Newborn schedules?

Chick7806 · November 2010

Moms of outside babies/2nd timers... when/how do you go about putting a baby on a schedule of sorts? Right now, I'm pretty much letting her do her own thing- sleep, eat, wake whenever she wants. We don't really have a set bedtime or nap times or anything... Just wondering when/how to start all of that up? My goal is to have her settled into a good routine by the time I go back to work in January..

Any tips/advice? TIA! : )

MamaStef0810 · November 2010

I think it starts with paying attention to your baby's routine, what she likes, does, etc. and then plan a schedule accordingly. As she gets older her cues will become more distinct.

I think it's easier to work from bedtime backwards, so maybe for 5 days you really concentrate on getting her fed by a certain time, then changed for bed, and laid down by 7:30 or whatever time.

Just an FYI/personal experience, we've always been pretty flexible with DS so I may be more lax with schedules. Since we both work it was nice that his bedtime was later and we could spend more time with him. I think it's important that you keep in mind what is best for your family. Good luck!

LovesMM · November 2010

I'm not a mom yet but I was going to suggest the same thing as PP.

I would start with trying to establish a bedtime routine and then go from there.

So Long Astoria · November 2010

With DD we followed a modified Babywise schedule which had her sleeping through the night at 6 weeks. It's basically a set eat, sleep, play routine that you follow consistently. It's all about being consistent with timing....and our daughter seemed to really thrive on routine. She's been an awesome sleeper ever since (she's 3 now). We plan on doing the exact same thing with #2.

rainydayluck · November 2010

We are starting with a bedtime routine to start. We either bathe her or do lotion and change her into a bedtime outfit, feed her, read a book then put her down. So far, she seems wide awake after this at the times we have started it, so we are still playing with the timing.

Kellina · November 2010

We did about a 3hr rotating "schedule"- every 3 hours- eat, sleep, wake... repeat. I EBF for 4+ mo and it worked for the most part. Sometimes he ate sooner or later, but if it was less than 2 hours, I'd try other things first before feeding, and if he went over 4 hours, I woke him to eat. (other than at night, of course!)

He STTN 8+ hours at 4 weeks old, and I do not think it had to do with us! He's been an awesome sleeper from the get-go!

I swaddled for a long time- 4-5 months- which I think helped too. And from the start we made sure nighttime was no-fuss... dim lights, whispers, etc...

HTH! It's tough and all babies are different!

JulietL129 · November 2010

Right now we have a 'bedtime routine', but it's pretty much what he wants to do.

Ltlsktl30 · November 2010

So Long Astoria:
With DD we followed a modified Babywise schedule which had her sleeping through the night at 6 weeks. It's basically a set eat, sleep, play routine that you follow consistently. It's all about being consistent with timing....and our daughter seemed to really thrive on routine. She's been an awesome sleeper ever since (she's 3 now). We plan on doing the exact same thing with #2.

I am currently reading Babywise by Gary Ezzo in regards to the different types of "routines". It's very interesting and we are thinking about doing a modified schedule of that.

OP: i would suggest reading the book to give you some ideas on how to come up with what works for your child.

Rink08 · November 2010

With DS1, we let him do his own thing until he was about 5/6 weeks old. At that point, he had already made his own feeding schedule but we started adjusting his napping times so that he would sleep longer at night. DS1 responded really well to it and was pretty much like clockwork after a few weeks. I'll try to do the same thing this time around.

JLSmith124 · November 2010

Obviously like PP said, all babies are different. We woke him during the day for feedings every 3 hours, we didn't let him sleep as long as he wanted to during the day. This way he gets used to night and day. We would do the last feeding around 9-10pm and let him sleep until he was hungry. By 3 weeks he was STTN from 10-5 (he had been steadily gaining weight, so it wasn't an issue to let him sleep that long.)

MrsD_111106 · November 2010

Ltlsktl30:
So Long Astoria:
With DD we followed a modified Babywise schedule which had her sleeping through the night at 6 weeks. It's basically a set eat, sleep, play routine that you follow consistently. It's all about being consistent with timing....and our daughter seemed to really thrive on routine. She's been an awesome sleeper ever since (she's 3 now). We plan on doing the exact same thing with #2.

I am currently reading Babywise by Gary Ezzo in regards to the different types of "routines". It's very interesting and we are thinking about doing a modified schedule of that.

OP: i would suggest reading the book to give you some ideas on how to come up with what works for your child.

Just a heads up. Babywise is a VERY controversial book on the boards. You may get totally attacked on other boards for mentioning using it. I'm not saying I agree with what it's about (and yes I've read it), but you will find people with super strong opinions about it. Just an FYI...

Chick7806 · November 2010

MrsD_111106:
Ltlsktl30:
So Long Astoria:
With DD we followed a modified Babywise schedule which had her sleeping through the night at 6 weeks. It's basically a set eat, sleep, play routine that you follow consistently. It's all about being consistent with timing....and our daughter seemed to really thrive on routine. She's been an awesome sleeper ever since (she's 3 now). We plan on doing the exact same thing with #2.
I am currently reading Babywise by Gary Ezzo in regards to the different types of "routines". It's very interesting and we are thinking about doing a modified schedule of that.
OP: i would suggest reading the book to give you some ideas on how to come up with what works for your child.
Just a heads up. Babywise is a VERY controversial book on the boards. You may get totally attacked on other boards for mentioning using it. I'm not saying I agree with what it's about (and yes I've read it), but you will find people with super strong opinions about it. Just an FYI...

Yeah. I've already heard controversial things about it, IRL. I'm not that interested in reading it. But it's interesting, nonetheless.

Gidgetwho · November 2010

MrsD_111106:
Ltlsktl30:

So Long Astoria:
With DD we followed a modified Babywise schedule which had her sleeping through the night at 6 weeks. It's basically a set eat, sleep, play routine that you follow consistently. It's all about being consistent with timing....and our daughter seemed to really thrive on routine. She's been an awesome sleeper ever since (she's 3 now). We plan on doing the exact same thing with #2.

I am currently reading Babywise by Gary Ezzo in regards to the different types of "routines". It's very interesting and we are thinking about doing a modified schedule of that.

OP: i would suggest reading the book to give you some ideas on how to come up with what works for your child.

Just a heads up. Babywise is a VERY controversial book on the boards. You may get totally attacked on other boards for mentioning using it. I'm not saying I agree with what it's about (and yes I've read it), but you will find people with super strong opinions about it. Just an FYI...

Agree with PP. Babywise is a rather rigid schedule and if that is what you are looking for it may very well work with your baby. Another great book with a very different approach is Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth. I didn't really schedule DD, she kind of fell into her own schedule.

I'm not really a big fan of the Babywise method, I feel that it takes away from feeding on demand and following baby's cues. The nice thing about Healthy Sleep Habits is that he outlines the importance of fostering good sleep for baby from the beginning no matter how you do it. He also gives advice on how many naps/hours of sleep a night per age and general times for them. It goes from birth up to age 3 or so...

Good luck, and ultimately don't worry about being flamed by what others do/don't agree with. Go with what works best for you and your baby, even if it is Babywise. Wink

MrsD_111106 · November 2010

As for a newborn schedule, we didn't really have one until DS was 1/1.5 months old. We were in survival mode until then. Do what you've gotta do. When we did have some sort of schedule, it was one DS basically made himself rather than one we put him on. He'd get hungry every couple of hours, but stay awake after eating instead of sleeping. He'd "play" for a while, then get sleepy and go down for a nap.

We did have a bedtime routine to cue him that his time to really sleep and was swaddled until he was about 5 months old. (Hello MiracleBlanket! I love you.)

The best suggestion I have for you is to go with your gut. You know what's best for your baby. You can read every book in the world, but you are your baby's momma and know her better than anyone.

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